Infamous Sacramento Killer 'Tells All' In Sold-Out Play

Dorothea Montalvo Puente, center, is escorted by Sacramento police at the airport early Thursday morning, Nov. 17, 1988 as she was brought to Sacramento from Los Angeles by a chartered jet.

Walt Zeboski / AP Photo

Dorothea Puente is well-known in Sacramento after several bodies were discovered on the grounds of her F Street boarding house. She was convicted of three murders in 1988 and was serving a life sentence when she died in 2011.

Actor Janis Stevens has never been shy about taking on the persona of a strong, singular woman. This time it’s Dorothea Puente. Stevens plays the notorious serial killer in a new play at California Stage called “Dorothea Puente Tells All.” The production hasn’t even opened yet, but all the shows are already sold out. How does this story resonate today and why is it so popular?